Williams v. Opm
This text of Williams v. Opm (Williams v. Opm) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.
Opinion
NOTE: Pursuant to Fed. Cir. R. 47.6, this disposition is not citable as precedent. It is a public record.
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit 05-3330
DALE I. WILLIAMS,
Petitioner,
v.
OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT,
Respondent. ___________________________
DECIDED: January 17, 2006 ___________________________
Before MICHEL, Chief Judge, BRYSON and DYK, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM.
Petitioner Dale I. Williams (“Williams”) petitions for review of the final decision of
the Merit Systems Protection Board (“Board”), affirming the decision of the Office of
Personnel Management (“OPM”) not to award Williams retirement service credit for time
during which Williams was separated from service but did not receive disability benefits
from the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (“OWCP”). We affirm.
BACKGROUND
Williams is currently employed as a letter carrier by the United States Postal
Service (“USPS”). On August 2, 1976, while working for the USPS, Williams suffered a
work-related back injury. He successfully applied for benefits from the OWCP, and
began receiving compensation for wage loss for temporary total disability on September
21, 1976. Effective November 16, 1976, Williams retired from the USPS under the
disability provision of the Civil Service Retirement System, and elected to receive OWCP benefits rather than annuity payments under the Civil Service Retirement Act
(“CSRA”). OWCP terminated Williams’ benefits on April 25, 1979, and he elected to
receive CSRA benefits as of that date. Williams’ CSRA annuity benefits were restored
effective April 26, 1979.
OWCP determined that Williams failed to report income earned between April 15,
1977, and April 26, 1979; that, as a result, he was ineligible for OWCP benefits during
that time; that the OWCP benefits he received during that time constituted an
overpayment; and that OPM should withhold funds from Williams’ CSRA annuity
payments to recover the overpayment. Williams’ elected to receive retroactive CSRA
benefits for the period from April 15, 1977 to April 25, 1979, which OPM disbursed to
Williams in a lump sum. Williams was reinstated to his position with the USPS effective
March 31, 1984, and his CSRA annuity was suspended effective June 1, 1985, because
of his return to work.
Williams applied for immediate retirement in February, 2002 claiming that he was
entitled to retirement service credit for the period from November 17, 1976, through
March 30, 1984. OPM determined that the period from November 17, 1976, through
April 14, 1977, was creditable, but that the period from April 15, 1977, through March
30, 1984, was not creditable. The Board affirmed, concluding that Williams did not
receive OWCP benefits from April 15, 1977, through March 16, 1984, and that only time
spent receiving OWCP benefits is creditable for retirement purposes under 5 U.S.C. §
8151(a) and 5 U.S.C. § 8332(f). The Board’s decision became final on June 20, 2005,
and Williams timely appealed. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1295(a)(9).
05-3330 2 DISCUSSION
Williams challenges the Board’s conclusion that he was not entitled to service
credit for the period from April 15, 1977, to March 30, 1984, because he did not receive
OWCP benefits during that time. The Board’s decision must be affirmed unless it is
found to be arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance
with law; obtained without procedures required by law, rule or regulation; or
unsupported by substantial evidence. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(c) (2000); Yates v. Merit Sys.
Prot. Bd., 145 F.3d 1480, 1483 (Fed. Cir. 1998). We review questions of law de novo.
Czarkowski v. Merit Sys. Protection Bd., 390 F.3d 1347, 1349 (Fed. Cir. 2004).
An employee who receives OWCP benefits is entitled to credit for the time during
which he received OWCP payments for purposes of computing CSRA retirement
benefits.1 The Board concluded that Williams did not receive OWCP benefits from April
15, 1977, the date on which Williams was no longer eligible for OWCP benefits
according to the OWCP’s determination, to April 25, 1979, the date on which Williams’
OWCP benefits were terminated. The Board also concluded that the evidence showed
that Williams did not receive OWCP benefits from April 25, 1979, to March 30, 1985, the
date on which Williams returned to service. The Board’s conclusions are in accordance
with law and supported by substantial evidence.
1 5 U.S.C. § 8151(a) (2000) (chapter governing OWCP benefits; providing that “the entire time during which the employee was receiving compensation under this chapter shall be credited to the employee for purposes of . . . rights and benefits based upon length of service”); 5 U.S.C. § 8332(f) (2000) (chapter governing CSRA annuity benefits; providing that “[c]redit shall be allowed for leaves of absence without pay granted an employee . . . while receiving benefits under subchapter I of chapter 81 of this title,” and that for employees returning to service, periods of separation during which OWCP benefits are received are deemed “leaves of absence without pay”).
05-3330 3 Williams nevertheless argues, as he did before the Board, that he is entitled to
service credit for the entire period of his separation under 5 C.F.R. § 353.107, which
provides, in pertinent part, that “an employee absent because of . . . compensable injury
is generally entitled to . . . receive[] credit for the entire period of absence for purposes
of rights and benefits based upon seniority and length of service. . . .” The Board
concluded that “[t]his broad language cannot be relied on to award appellant service
credit . . . in light of the clear language of 5 U.S.C. § 8151(a) and 8332(f) that an
employee who has returned to work following recovery from a compensable injury is
entitled to service credit only for the period of time that he was in receipt of OWCP
benefits.” Williams v. Office of Pers. Mgmt., No. DE-0831-03-0448-I-1, slip op. at 7
(June 20, 2005). We do not agree that the statutory provisions on which the Board
relied preclude retirement credit for the period that an employee receives CSRA
disability benefits. However, the regulation cannot be read to require retirement credit
for any period other than that during which the employee receives OWCP benefits. The
regulations define “injury” for the purposes of the subchapter as “a compensable injury
sustained under the provisions of 5 U.S.C. chapter 81, subchapter 1 . . . .” 5 C.F.R. §
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